Departure
by CaptainLyssa
Summary: Post Endgame. The idea came from watching a Trek Actually video on the net. Short and bitter sweet.
1. Chapter 1: Homecoming

"Well," Fleet Admiral Chen demanded.

Sighing, the councillor's expression told a story without words.

"You're telling me," the highest officer in Starfleet insisted, "not one of them passed the phycological evaluations."

"No," the middle-aged man of Betazoid heritage stated softly. "Or at least not above the absolute minimum required by Starfleet."

"Why?"

"Seven years, trapped in the Delta quadrant as the only Federation vessel," Usal Igega explained patiently, "two opposing crews with different ideology attempting to become one, a host of first contacts, many of which went very badly and an inability to contact loved ones. I would have thought that enough."

"The Captain, what is her name again?"

"Janeway, Sir," Usal stated with just the vaguest hint of censure.

"Surely we can put her back on a starship," insisted the Admiral.

"Sir," the man controlled his tone, barely. "Captain Janeway suffered more than any other member of her crew. Seven years spent as the only officer of her rank, without the ability to socialise with others of her position or her own crew. The woman has been an island, unable to form an intimate relationship of any length. There was no support from her seniors, every decision had to be weighed against the Prime Directive without the backing of a command team. The Captain could not call for aid in a situation which might damage or destroy her ship. While crossing a void that should have taken two years, the woman became clinical depressed, to such a state, both the EMH and First Officer have made entries in their logs. Don't even get me started with the Hirogen, Year of Hell or Equinox situations."

"Well, that ex-Maquis ex-Lt. Commander," the Admiral hunted for his name, "Chakotay. Surely he's fit for assignment."

"Mr. Chakotay chose not to keep his commission. Under the circumstance, who could blame him," Usal said. "His home planet was one of the first to suffer at the hands, firstly of the Cardassian's, and then the Jem'Hada. The Doran system is little but ash after the Dominion war. Voyager's First Officer had little love of the Federation prior to assuming his role. Why would he choose to remain in a system he'd already dismissed?"

"I see you're point," Chen sighed. "Lt. Commander Tuvok?"

"The amount of mind melds is not infinite, even for a Vulcan," Usal stated. "The mental loneliness contributed to his medical discharge."

"There was that ex-convict, the Admiral's son," Chen huffed. "Paris. Surely he'd fit for duty."

"Lt. Commander Paris declined to remain in Starfleet, even after his well-deserved promotion and with the current issues facing the Federation after the war," Usal almost rolled his eyes. "Voyager was the man's saving grace. Thomas Paris was able to rehabilitate himself on that vessel with the support of his crew mates. However, how the man was every allowed into Starfleet in the first place is questionable. His early evaluations clearly show his was more suited to the Federation Naval Patrol. He is not fit for the command stream."

"Was there anyone on that ship who could continue to serve in Starfleet?" Demanded the Feet Admiral.

"Lt. B'Elanna Torres anger is at the edge of requirements," Usal reported. "Ensign Kim should be promoted to Full Lieutenant or Lt. Commander and given the roll of first officer. Other than that, the crew have just experienced to many events, leaving permanent damage to their psyche."

"There are hundreds of thousands of Officers currently serving who have experienced hardship and loss," commented Chen with anger. "The Dominion war scared us all."

"True," Usal sighed. "You are forgetting, Admiral, we had councillors, a support system for our returning service men and women. The crew of Voyager went seven years without so much as a decent shore leave. They had no contact with friends and family. There were no starbases for their ship to pull into. Each resource had to be acquired. In many ways they lived much like the Maquis. In fact, combining the crews was probably a protective measure and the main reason they survived when the Equinox did not. Chakotay and his crew brought skills into the mix that Voyager required to survive completely alone. The Captain's strict Starfleet policies kept the crew disciplined and working to a single purpose. Together, it was the only reason Voyager managed to make it home."

"But can they be rehabilitated?" The Admiral enquired, his hope fading. The truth was, the Federation was in tatters after the Dominion war. They needed every single officer and vessel in case the Borg attacked.

"No," the Betazoid answered quickly. "There has been too much damage done, to many unresolved emotions and events for any person from the Voyager Crew to continue to serve Starfleet. Even Lt Torres and Ensign Kim barely meet the phycological minimum. I'm afraid the isolation and events damaged the psyche."

"How are they going to take this news?" Chen finally met the councillor's eye.

"Not well, I'm afraid." Usal knew it was his task to inform them, starting with Captain Kathryn Janeway.


	2. Chapter 2: Kathryn

Her face a controlled mask, Kathryn Janeway gave the man across the desk her best death glare. She would not show her anger and rage toward this Starfleet appointed councillor. The Betazoid was, after all, only a functionary completing his mission.

"Admiral Chen…." Usal started.

"Should have had the balls to tell myself and my crew personally," Kathryn wouldn't allow her people to be treated this way. "I think it's the least we are owed."

Six weeks ago, they'd come home to a massive celebration, fireworks over the Golden Gate, cheering crowds, adulation. It had been somewhat of a shock to the Federation, that first contact from _Voyager_ through normal channels. Establishing the Pathfinder project and a communication's link from a distance of thirty thousand light years, Starfleet expected time to prepare for such a momentous occasion. Showing up, Borg sphere surrounding them, exploding as they exited the transwarp conduit and _Voyager_ flying valiantly through the wreckage to join her fellow Starships was a sight the media continued to play. They hadn't crept quietly into the Alpha quadrant. Starfleet couldn't hide Voyager's return.

"My crew?" Janeway demanded. She'd contacted each and every one personally.

Kathryn knew Chakotay had escaped Earth with Seven at the earliest opportunity. He had little love of the Federation, less since uncovering the murdered Maquis and the cinder which had once been his home. After all those years together, he would only continue to serve one Captain. He also knew it wouldn't be allowed, so had made the decision by resigning his provisional commissio.

Tuvok was now with his family on Vulcan receiving the treatment required for his neurological condition. Starfleet had granted a medical discharge after promoting him to full Commander with all the privileges of that rank. Kathryn Janeway contacted T'Pal for regular updates. It seemed her Security Officer was responding to treatment, however only direct family were able to visit at this early stage.

Tom Paris. Now there was a natural father if ever she saw one. He couldn't wait to get down to sickbay and his new daughter. The helmsman missed the fanfare and piloting Voyager into San Francisco but couldn't have cared. The moment he was able, Tom resigned his commission. Of course, Starfleet hadn't accepted, they'd promoted him to Lt. Commander to sweeten the deal and offered a year's parental leave. Mr. Paris took the offer and ran to a nice, warm island in the South Pacific perfect for Klingon physiology.

Lt. Torres hadn't been so lucky. Former Maquis, she'd been questioned at length about the changes to Voyager's propulsion systems. Accusatory in nature, the inquisitors' tone hadn't gone down well with a postpartum Klingon mother and it was showing. The jury was still out on B'Elanna's rank and future position within Starfleet. As far as her husband was concerned, the further away the better, especially if his marriage was to remain intact.

Poor Harry. Still an Ensign after seven years. Even the media outlets were calling him the longest serving Ensign in Starfleet. In six weeks, the powers that be hadn't considered a mere Ensign important enough to be part of the senior team and therefore, Mr. Kim had been through psych testing and a debrief but not a full investigation of his service record in the Delta quadrant. He'd been relegated to obscurity, awaiting his turn with the rest of _Voyager's_ one hundred and twenty crew.

"Can you honestly say," Usal requested, reading the emotions crossing Kathryn's mind, "any person on _Voyager_ is in better mental shape than you?"

Snorting, Janeway knew, absolutely, that no one in this quadrant could or would possibly understand. " _Voyager_ _**is**_ a family. We worked together, counted every loss, overcame obstacles you can only dream about, even with the Dominion war. That bond is one that won't easily be broken, no matter how Starfleet tries."

 _Maligned! Sidelined! Washed up! That's what Starfleet is telling me,_ Janeway fumed silently. _I've spent seven years in the Delta quadrant, facing enemies the Federation has little idea of, that make even the Jem'Hadar look like, well, not armatures, but not true mercenaries either. I got my crew home, with only a few deaths. I know we're all scared by what happened out there but I'm not going to take this laying down._

"Have my crew been given the option to stay in Starfleet?" Kathryn insisted, her voice as hard and uncompromising as her grey eyes. "You haven't even begun to process more than the senior team, and not all of them because they don't meet Starfleet regulation. Should the Borg attack, if the Federation faces another threat like the Jem'Hadar, the crew of _Voyager_ would be your best asset. Don't hide behind this psych evaluation as a means to quietly dispose of us."

"I'm not," Usal frowned. He knew this interview would never go well. "The truth is not one of your crew passed the base minimum for redeployment. Lt. Torres and Ensign Kim's scores are close enough that an application might be granted on further assessment. Commanders Chakotay and Paris have resigned and Commander Tuvok discharged medically."

"Tom's enjoying being a father," Kathryn exhaled, trying to keep her anger contained, "especially as Starfleet is grilling his wife. It's placing undue pressure on their marriage."

"There was always going to be consequences," Usal reminded calmly, "from a seven-year deep space mission."

Kathryn's glare turned icy. "There are other ships in the fleet who have a mandated five-year mission. I don't believe their crews are treated to this level of examination. What about the survivors of Wolfe 359 and the Dominion War. I know many of the officers and they are still serving, even under psychological duress."

"After months of counselling," Usal explained patiently, "which remains ongoing."

"We _**Voyagers**_ , as the media are calling us," Kathryn spat, "have an enforced six-month reintegration period, longer if required. You're telling me, not one member of the one hundred and thirty crew will be able to overcome their PTSD? You think we didn't know how much the isolation and constant survival cost us, as individuals and as a family. We lived it, every day. I think I'm in a better position to tell you what my crew can take than someone who can't possibly understand."

"And that," Usal used his trump card, "is part of the problem, Kathryn. They are not your crew any longer. You're not in charge, alone without superior council or the ability to bend the rules and regulations. You need to follow those codes of behaviour that faded on _Voyager_ as survival became imperative. Will any of the Voyagers be able to cope with missions were very little occurs, where protocol and procedure take precedence, where there is not an alien of the week waiting around the corner to strike?"

Standing abruptly, Kathryn Janeway walked over to the floor to ceiling window. Looking out onto San Francisco harbour that the famous bridge, she whispered, "honestly, I don't know."


	3. Chapter 3: Seven

"I have heard from former Captain Janeway," Seven spoke in her clipped tone as she prepared their evening meal, from scratch.

That Seven had spoken with Kathryn was not in issue. She often comm'ed her former First Officer's home on this out of the way colony world. That first debriefing session post Voyager's landing at the Preciado, on the Academy grounds, Chakotay remembered why he'd quit Starfleet the first time. Learning of Doran's fate sealed his decision. He's written his resignation letter in record time and left with Seven in tow before getting official conformation.

Blame and censure needed to be apportioned for losing the only Intrepid class ship on her maiden mission. It was a standard game played by the Federation, only there had been an undertone of desperation post the Dominion War. While the data stream allowed the Voyagers to catch up on current events and family news, the amount of information able to be transmitted was not infinite. In short, the crew had come home woefully under prepared for the changes in the Alpha quadrant. So, Chakotay convinced Seven to come with him, as far away from Earth as possible.

"Former?" Chakotay questioned, seated at the dining table in the small attached alcove.

"Starfleet believes the Captain is no longer efficient, that she can no longer preform her duties due to her experiences in the Delta quadrant," Seven responded, allowing her eyebrow implant to rise. The slight expression of distaste on the young woman's face displayed how far her emerging humanity had evolved. "None of our former crew have been offered their commissions. Lt. Torres and Ensign Kim have the opportunity to reapply for psychological analysis after their forced six-month repatriation."

"You have got to be joking," the man replied, incensed. Jumping from his chair, Chakotay began to pace. Muttering under his breath, Seven's enhanced hearing captured her lover's words. "Starfleet is Kathryn's life. For seven years, getting home, keeping _Voyager_ in one piece, maintaining procedure and protocol when everything else around us was going badly, it was all she lived for."

"Perhaps," very deliberately placing the spatula on the counter, Seven stated, "that is the issue."

Pivoting to face the blond, Chakotay gave her a curious look. Often Seven would cut to the chase with her lack of social etiquette. Her logic could be as infuriating as Tuvok's at times. "How?"

"Former Captain Janeway," Seven started.

"Kathryn," Chakotay interrupted. "If she's not a Captain any longer, let's get in the habit of calling her Kathryn."

"Then you believe this change to be permanent?" Asked the former Borg.

"One thing I learnt a long time ago, Seven," Chakotay sighed, shaking his head and falling into the seat he'd vacated a few moments earlier, "once Starfleet's made up its mind, very little will change it. No, if Kathryn's been found to be inefficient, then that's the way she'll stay."

"It is logical," Seven announced. " _Voyager_ , with it's Borg inspired armour, slipstream drive and other enhancement made to survive in the Delta quadrant will sustain a team of Engineers for many years as the technology is improved and incorporated into the current fleet. I believe that is the real reason Lt. Torres and Ensign Kim have been given the opportunity to reapply for their positions."

"You think they want to pick B'Elanna and Harry's brain's?" Chakotay saw the logic. When his partner offered a nonverbal answer, the man whistled. "Tom's not going to be happy with that. He didn't take much longer than you and I to get as far away from Starfleet as possible. I think it took him three point two seconds after arriving out of that transwarp conduit to decide."

"Lt. Paris," Seven started, only to be interrupted by her lover once again. "Mr Paris," she corrected, "has other obligations that he believes are more important. This conversation is irrelevant at this time as Tom has not been allowed to resign from Starfleet. He is on one-year parental leave."

No matter how Chakotay tried, Seven ignored him as she took up her spatula once again. Before long the small survival cottage smelt wonderful and his mouth watered. They had bartered with their neighbours on this small M class moon for fresh produce while they established their own vegetable garden. Like Voyager, replicators were used infrequently, allowing the solar power system to be utilised in more pressing areas. The people of Gentling III worked together to establish a settlement. So far there were less than one thousand pioneers, many scared from the Dominion War and seeking a quiet, peaceful life. Chakotay, with his Starfleet background, ability to manage people and time in the Maquis, had become a pivotal member of the society. He'd been elected to the governing council within a week and couldn't be happier with their new life.

Setting the meal on the table a half hour later, Seven slid into her seat. "I believe Starfleet to be correct in their decision. Kathryn would not reassimilate in the politics of the Alpha quadrant."

"Why do you say that?" Chakotay, intrigued by the sudden return to their previous topic, was drawn back in.

"As Captain of Voyager, Kathryn could be tyrannical, a dictator. She answered to no one. While following the procedures of Starfleet, she often bent or broke the Prime Directive in the name of survival," Seven's blue eyes locked onto Chakotay's. "What would the consequence be for such a violation in the Alpha quadrant?"

Chewing the food in his mouth, Chakotay though this idea over before answering. "I pity the Captain on any other vessel, if they had to work together. You're right, Seven. Kathryn's used to throwing her weight around in the name of survival. I can't see her in a teaching position, it would be far to insipid. The only other choice would be promotion to the Admiralty. Even then, it would lack the action of command."

"I do not believe," Seven responded, "Kathryn's style of command, while efficient in the Delta quadrant is compatible with the current political climate which is distrustful and defensive. The Borg may still pose a threat, if they can recover from the transwarp hub destruction and her knowledge would be valuable, however the Federation is in possession of Voyager's logs. Kathryn's ability to apportion self-blame, to suffer guilt on behalf of others, would not make her a promotion prospect. Indeed," she concluded, "I believe it to be a failing of her character, one Starfleet has now recognised and used to end her current commission."

Head down so Seven couldn't see his smile, Chakotay muttered, "don't I know it." Sighing, he added, "you might just be right, Seven. Life in the Alpha quadrant has not turned out the way any of us expected."

"Are you unhappy with our current living arrangement?" She demanded.

"No," Chakotay's smile broadened as he reached out a hand and laid it on his lovers' forearm. "Far from it. I believe we are the only Voyagers without reservations for our future. I'm very happy, Seven."

"As am I," she smiled.


End file.
